** Squat Notes:
I'm not sure exactly what happened. I lost balance at the bottom. It wasn't really a weight/weakness issue, just Balance. I'm not going to call this a true Missed Rep, because I was busting through the other sets and the weight felt fairly light.

## Bench Press Notes:
I was having trouble with my Bench before the time out of the Gym. 95# seemed heavy. I will work UP in 5# increments until I get past my previous sticking point of 110#.

%% RDL Notes:
Not much to say here... This is exactly where my last RDL Day was, with exception to some warmup set differences. I am progressing fairly well with these, and My ROM is getting much better.

After an unplanned 8 days out of the Gym, Yesterday's workout wasn't too bad. I didn't even try to start back at the same weights as my last workout. I will work my way back up for the Squats and Bench Press. Honestly, I had intentions of only doing 95# working sets for my squats, but the warm up sets felt light, so I threw the extra 10# on the bar for my work sets and started lifting.

Squat Notes:
!! Didn't feel right so I stopped. Likely caused by warming up and the first work set on the Smith... ARRGHHHH

Press Notes:
I seem to really be struggling with these. I need to determine exactly where my weakness is with these.

Pendlay Row Notes:
No Real Issues, the Second Work Set was the hardest though.

Overall:
I didn't really have the motivation last night to truly PUSH myself. I just wanted to get in and then get back out. I need to find out why I'm not sleeping well which will help my motivation and enthusiasm.

Sunday Afternoon 11/23/2008....
Tear Down Stage, pack up and Load truck... The Last service ends ~12:00 and we must be completely out by 4:00... Tear Down as fast as possible..

Early Next Week....
Unload Truck and store equipment...

Overall.... Not much of a "WORKOUT", but a lot of Fun Work that involves quite a bit of pushing/pulling/and lifting. It did feel pretty good to move some of the heavier boxes Sunday without much trouble.

Squat Notes:
Lots of Squirming our of the Hole again, but I did finish all reps. Hopefully, this was just due to the unplanned time out of the Gym... Worked on better breathing. Basically, Fairly deep breathe in at the top, hold down and back up, then repeat. Is this a good method, I remember a link to a particular breathing technique, but don't remember the name.

Bench Notes:
Slight change in Form for this workout. Grip Width was about 2" inside the outer ring as compared to wrapping my little finger around the smooth ring previously. Also, on all previous attempts, I would let my elbow flair out to the side, but for this workout, I tried to keep my arms and elbows tucked more. Again tried to focus more on proper breathing and technique. This seemed to help as I would not be thinkng about the weight being lifted.

Deadlift Notes:
Performed these in the Cage and were a true Deadlift, not the RDL's I had been doing. I used the first Safety bar location as the "Floor". This height is ~2" off the floor for the 45# plates. Flexibility has really improved.

Overall Notes:
November Sucked for getting to the Gym. Just to much going on, but December already looks better. Felt quite tired after the workout, but the DOMS on day 2 are quite rough.. I actually look forward to getting back in the Gym tonight...

Diet/Food Notes:
Let's just say that I'm a bit confused currently. For the past month, I have not tracked any calories, or even cared what I ate. Basically, if hungry, Eat whatever was available.

Now for the problem... The 4 months or so prior to November, I kept to a fairly strict 2000 cal Diet with less than 200 carbs per day.

Bottom Line, I've actually lost a couple of pounds, but not been to the Gym or eaten even close to right. I would have expected to have gained and not lost. I should probably forget about the scales and start using a tape measure to gauge progress. Arm, Chest, and Gut size are what I want changed...

Squat Notes:
Not sure what to say. The Last rep of Set 2 was slow and hard, but I pushed through it. Then on Rep 4 of the last set, I dropped down a little deeper than I had been and that was it. I just couldn't push through it and back up.

And By Deeper, I mean But touching calves Deep.

Press Notes:
I don't know why, but this just is not a fun lift for me. That's OK, I just need to push through it and keep progressing. I think my Triceps are my weak link in this list, which doesn't make sense to me, because My Triceps have progressed the most since I started lifting.

After watching more videos including several from Rippetoes, it appears as though my arm position is slightly wrong when racking the bar on my chest. My Elbows tend to flair out in stead of being slightly in front of the bar. Can anyone recommend a way or grip position which may help correct this. I don't know if my elbows flairing out has any effect on how much I can lift or not, but I'd prefer to correct the form problems ASAP.

Bent/Pendlay Rows:
No real problems. The Work Sets felt heavy, but good. As my lower back gets stronger from the Deadlifts and Squats, it's much easier to control the lower back rounding which caused me a problem when I began doing these.

Cliff Planck

Last edited by wilburburns on Mon Dec 15, 2008 9:01 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Squat and Bench Notes:
Not much to say, Bench Press was heavy, but I pushed through all reps on both movements.

%% DL Notes:
These still aren't from the Floor, but are pretty Close. I think I can start trying the Working Set from the Floor, or at least even any set above 135#.

Weight Notes:
167# = +3.5# since June.
BF% 18.4% = -3% since June.

Therefore, I have added some Muscle, but still reduced my BF. This is pretty good considering I have not been watching my Diet/food intake at all for a while now.. This holiday season will be over soon. :)

Squat Notes:
Felt Good overall. Some Balance Issues and rolled up on balls of my feet on a couple of reps.

Overhead Press Notes:
Triceps seem to be the weak muscle for these. I have been having trouble with the Press, but last night seemed extremely weak for some reason.

Pendlay/Bent Row:
The First working set, I really felt in my upper back/shoulders, but the last two working sets were not an issue.

Overall:
Good Workout, length ~ 1hr 15min. 3 times a week has been hard to do, but only going twice a week seems to be helping my Squat more anyway. The Bad news is that the alternating movements (Presses, DL, Rows) are only done once a week, instead of twice a week alternated.

** Squat Notes...
Failed on Second Rep of 125#. Therefore immediately reset the bar and weight and began working sets of 115#.

%% DL Notes:
All Sets done from the Floor. Form Seemed to suffer with the working set. Knees locked out before my back angle was right. The Next "A" Workout, I will do 175# Again and make sure my Form is better.

** Squat Notes:
Same issue as last workout, except this time on the second rep. However, I finished all reps with the 115# working sets.

&& Overhead Press Notes:
Squat Cage/Rack was busy, therefore I had to Clean the weight Up to my chest. The Clean and the Presses were both a struggle at the full working sets, but I was able to push through and complete the full 3x5. This is a first with 80#... YEAH..

Pendlay Row Notes:
Form fell apart as 115# was pretty heavy. This was not at all a powerful Lift/Jerk like I was doing with just 105#. Also, I was getting a little bounce from my knees, which is not allowed in the strict form Pendlay Row... Next "B" Workout, I need to do 115# Again and focus on Power and Form.

Other Notes:
I hadn't ever done Cleans before, but they seemed enjoyable, and I may start alternating the rows with the Power Clean which is part of the original routine. I will need to start at a lower weight and work up like I have all other lifts...

Squat Notes:
Still couldn't get the full 3x5 working set at 125#... BUT, I was much closer. I think I may be seeing a pattern as to why some Reps Fail. Time will tell if my theory is correct...

Bench Notes:
Not much to say.. Finished all reps and sets, but just barely. Safety says I should probably do 110# at my next "A" Day.

DL Notes:
175# Still felt very heavy, and may have caused some lower back rounding. But I did get all 5 working reps in.

Dip Notes:
These are getting better. I do these with shorter rest periods, Don't time the rest, probably 60 seconds.

Overall, not a bad workout for Christmas Eve. My Legs are shot and I'm tired, but Dinner tonight and a coupe of good meals tomorrow should make all the pain go away.. I have intentions of getting back to the Gym on Friday which will keep me on a 3-day workout cycle...

** Squat Notes:
Added the 115# Single in my warmup, because I just didn't know if I was ready to lift 125#. Also, I have been working on a Lower Bar (Not sure If I'm at a tru "Low Bar") Squat with a thumbless grip. This has been a little hard on my shoulder blades where the bar rests.

!! Overhead Press Notes:
Once Again, I did these without a rack, therefore I started each set from a Hang Clean Position. I was upset that I once again becams stuck at 85# and just wanted to try anything to help progress past that point. Therefore, I added the 7 reps at the lower 65#. 7 is just what felt good, no real logic as to why that amount.

Row Notes:
Work sets were still not as powerful as I would like, but they were completed.

Pullup Notes:
These were just real tough today... I need a lot of work here.

Overall Notes:
I had a bit of shoulder pain in my right shoulder. This is not a muscle pain, but more of a joint/rotator pain. It's a shooting/stabbing pain when I move my arm in certain directions.

Squat Notes:
YEAH, I finally completed the full 3x5x125# work sets... Hopwever, I did notice more shoulder pain after completing the squats. Could the "lower Bar" position and thumbless grip be causing my shoulder issue as mentioned in the previous workout notes?

*** Bench Press Notes:
While warming up, the shoulder pain increased. And on my last warmup set, I felt my shoulder "pop". This occured as I raised the bar off the rack. Actually pressing wasn't to bad, but initially getting the weight up was bad. Then I tried to start my first Work Set, but decided to stop, due to the way myu shoulder felt.

DL Notes:
These felt good and are continuing to progress.

Overall Notes:
My Right Shoulder pain concerns me. At this point, it hurts to raise my arm. I may need to find some alternate movements besides the two to presses. Pulling movements don't seem to bother it, but pushing does hurt.

I am disappointed, because I feel like I was starting to make some decent progress in my routine.

Squat Notes:
Widened my grip to Palms on Smooth Ring, and Tightened my upper back/shoulders. This made the low bar position much more comfortable, And the work sets were fairly easy. I did not have any shoulder pain after squatting.

Overhead Press Notes:
After warming up without any shoulder pain, I continued and did my work sets at 85#. Couldn't complete all reps, but my shoulder still didn't hurt. However, I "Feel" like I may be overextending my back and leaning back to far while performing this lift.

Power Clean Notes:
This was my first time doing this lift. All I can say is that I should have been doing this all along. After completing these, I was tired and truly felt like I had been working out. Finishing up with Rows just hasn't been giving me the same feeling lately.

Initially, I thought the work sets would be light, but not after the 3rd set.

Other Notes:
Just for reference, I checked my BF% before leaving the Gym. Using hte same Omnitron machine as before.
BF%: 19%
BMI: 25.1
Weight: 171#

I need to take some other Measurements to start the new year with good reference points. Strength gains are easy to see by looking at the amount of weight lifted, but Body Composition is sometimes harder to see, due to the slow change over time.

Squat Notes:
Wow 135# Felt pretty good. I think I may have found a Low Bar Grip that doesn't bother my shoulders and is semi-comfortable. Also, I bought a Pair of Chuck Taylors to lift in. These seemed to really help my knees be more stable at the bottom of the lift. Could be entirely psychological though...

Bench Press Notes:
Overall everything felt pretty good. I really tried to keep my elbow tucked in close to the body, but they wanted to flair out as the weight went up and I started to fatigue. My shoulder was starting to ache by the final set, but I did complete all planned sets and reps.

DL Notes:
After warming up, I got in a discussion with a Former Trainer at the Gym about how crazy it was with all the EXTRA people. Therefore, I had plenty of Rest between my warm-ups and work sets. I feel I could likely have pulled more, but I'm happy to still be upping the weight 10+ pounds each week. This should likely slow down soon, but I hope I am wrong...

Dip Notes:
These really did bother my shoulder and I stopped after just one set.

Overall Notes:
The Gym was crazy. I waited until after 8:00 to go, because I knew it would be busy due to all the New Years Resolutions. I was right. When I first arrived three guys were doing Curls in the single Power Cage. Thankfully they were done by the time I finished my Cardio Warmup.. All the Benches were full and in general most of the Free Weight Area was buzzing with people. By the Time I finished my squats, the gym was clearing out and I could notice some o f the other regulars coming in and there. :) In between sets of the Bench I got up to get a drink from the fountain, and when I return, a guy is bent over doing dumbell rows on my bench, when at least two other benches were empty. Did I mention the couple guys doing some sort or circuit, which included Curls in the Cage. Oh Well... I'm sure the Madness will slow down soon. My New Years Resolutions never seemed to last more than a month.

Enough of my rant... But I would like to add that the Shoes did seem to help my squats, and likely DL also. I knew they would be more stable, but didn't truly realize how much more stable until now.

Also, the Former Trainer at the Gym said my routine was just brutal and couldn't figure out how I could come up with doing Squats then Bench, then Deads... I did tell him about Rippetoe and the Books.

Squat Notes:
Overall Pretty Good, some leaning forward, and a couple reps were slow to straighten the back. I should stick with this weight for the next workout.

Press Notes:
Work Set 1 and 2 had hard last reps, and the 3rd set was rushed due to the gym closing soon and tryning to finish my entire workout.. I have decided I prefer Cleaning the weight up instead of using the rack to get the bar into the starting position.

*** Power Clean Notes:
The Gym was closed and I could only do a single work set, which was rushed like my warmup for this. This is a new movement, and I really need to spend more time thinking about Form, which I did not do today, and my back feels this now. I think I let my lower back roll during the initial pull from the floor.

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